Final blog post- July 14

This has been a really amazing course for me! I can honestly say that I have never felt so confident when it comes to integrating technology into my teaching. Through the demonstrations and guidance we received in class, I learned to manipulate these tools on my own. It might sound silly, but I feel really proud of myself for these accomplishments.  I now feel like I could successfully build my own 'lms' through a wikispace (if I don't have access to one through my school division). Until this course, I had only ever used a wiki for a communal workspace when doing group assignments.   I now know how to make and embed videos into the wiki and I also know how to create interactive quizzes and activities through hot potatoes and to embed them into my wiki. 

I think making wikis will be a really useful skill for me in my new job next year- not only for working with students, but also for providing PD for the teachers with whom I work.  I might steal Prof. Larouche's idea of offering a short 2-3 minute video tutorial and then open up a place online for discussion. A wikispace would be the perfect venue for that!  Also- since I will be working with a variety of ESL students from grades 10-12- all of whom will be arriving with different levels of English proficiency and different needs- I see the potential of using a wikispace (or lms) to have students working on different tasks at one time- and having a central place to house their work without going completely crazy trying to keep on top of everything!

Over the past two weeks, I have not only learned how to make pretty and functional things with a wide variety of web 2.0 tools, but I also have learned to problem solve and to stretch beyond my comfort zone.  This has been good for me (although frustrating at times), because I would usually avoid what is unfamiliar to me.

I am SO grateful to have got a spot in this course. What a wonderful way to end my  MEd degree. It was well worth the 28 hours of driving and 2 weeks away from my family!  Merci beaucoup!